Not sure if its possible to ID this bird seen on the cliffs at Cape Solander Botany Bay NSW from these pics - it was a small speedy bird, definitely bigger than a Welcome Swallow but that sort of bird. I got a better view with naked eye, before i got the piics, and it appeared to have some distinct off white around the face and with a darker brown body than in first two pics. Thanks for any help.
Are you sure about the size, because I'm thinking maybe Peregrine Falcon?
Thanks for response SteveM.
Yes im positive about the size, and definitely not a raptor.
I got quite a good look at it before i got the camera on it and it was a new type of bird to me, distinctly solid torpedo shaped body with off white around the face. It was not a big bird, but there were welcome swallows around and it was bigger than those. I guessing it might be a swift - maybe a white throated needle tail - but i have never one before so thats just a guess. But the time of year is against that as they are summer migrants to Aust. And Im not sure about cliffs and heath as habitat for them. I have darkened the photo somewhat as the original may be overexposed.
Looks like it could be a white-throated needletail then. Photos seem to match (difficult to photograph at all, so well done). Maybe a bit confused with the weather?
I guess if a needletail was going to over-winter anywhere, then it would be on the coast where the weather is milder.
Dave, Sydney.
Thanks dave ... thats an interesting point as it actually was not too hard to get a photo of, much easier than any swallow, so that probaby counts against it being a swift. I will put it in my doubtful basket for the time being.
This is not a swift:
White-throated Needletails are grey-brown glossed with green and have white undertails. Their flight silhouette is also different (very long pointed wings etc). There are no confirmed records of this species between April and late September in NSW.
Some Fork-tailed Swifts do overwinter but as you can see the tail isn't forked and the shape/ colour is still wrong.
I'm still trying to get my head around this one.
I'm sticking with Peregrine Falcon. Barring in the underwing, dark crown with white on the side of the neck, you can sort of kinda see the yellow feet, & the cliff habitat is good for Peregrine too.
Thanks Owl and SteveM.
Thanks for sticking with it SteveM, I think you are right with Peregrine Falcon - sorry for doubting you before. I lightened up one of the photos and can indeed see yellow feet.
Peregrine did come to mind (looking at flight silhouette), and a closer look at details as Steve has done confirms this.
As far as size is concerned I've experienced wierd observations when viewing birds against a large, consistent background. E.g., in the Coorong I observed Emus against large sandhills & they appeared to be about half their usual size. I thought they were pigmy Emus until they trotted close to some shrubs. So this might explain the observation that this bird was about the size of a White-throated Needletail.
Thanks again Owl - i see that one of the habitats for Peregrine Falcon is 'coastal heath' which is exactly right for the place i saw it.
Thats an interesting phenomena Woko - it can be difficult to gauge the size without some familiar object in sight for comparison. Best spin i can put on it is to say i was only about 15cm out - thats not much! I did say it was a fast bird - i was right on that one
they are found pretty much worldwide except new zealand and antarctica
in every habitat from deserts to rainforests, alpine environs to offshore islands.